Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability: A Critical Review

This report provides a critical review of the importance of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainability for organizations. It includes two case studies of UK companies, Thornton's and Greggs UK, and their CSR strategies. The report highlights the need for organizations to undertake CSR strategies to excel in the market and conserve the environment.

Running head: CSR- A CRITICAL REVIEW
CSR- A CRITICAL REVIEW
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Executive summary
The report aims at understanding the needs and the requirements of the organization to undertake
the CSR strategies in order to excel in the market. The most important steps that is being
undertaken by the organizations is based on the sustenance of the market structure. Therefore the
companies must take steps in order to develop the CSR with the growing concerns for the
environment. The report helps in understanding the importance of the CSR with two examples of
the companies based on UK who have implemented the CSR in their models.

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Table of Contents
Introduction to the CSR...................................................................................................................3
Critical review of the importance of the CSR.................................................................................4
CSR reports of two UK companies.................................................................................................6
Case 1: Thornton’s.......................................................................................................................6
Case 2: Greggs UK......................................................................................................................8
References......................................................................................................................................10

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Introduction to the CSR
The changes that are being undertaken in the organizational structures based on the
change in the demands and the supplies have helped the organizations in evolving a new culture.
The new culture is based on the requirements of the organization to cope up with the market
demand. Therefore, the organization takes steps in order to ensure the progression that is being
planned by the organizations. The improvements in the organizational structure are being
undertaken through certain factors that judge the responsibility of the organizations towards the
society and the stakeholders of the company (Aguinis and Glavas 2012). It is through the proper
functioning of the stakeholders and the society that the company undertakes its decisions.
Therefore, the decisions taken by the organization in order to bring in the progress is based on
the availability of the resources. The sustainable approach that is being planned by the
organization is based on the responsibilities that the companies owe to the society and the
stakeholders of the company at large. These set of responsibilities can be termed as the Corporate
Social Responsibility or the CSR. It helps in determining the progress made by the organizations
in the respective markets. It determines the sustainable approach of the organizations and the
actions that portrays their conservable actions on the environment.
The functions that are being undertaken by the organizations, through the production and
the distribution processes, affect the environment through the depletions and the pollution.
Therefore, the companies are required to take steps in order to control the rates of the pollution in
order to lower the harmful emissions in the atmosphere. It can be termed as the sustainable
approach of the organization (Bondy, Moon and Matten 2012). The approach of the

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organizations and their care for the society is the basis of the CSR that is being followed by the
organization.
Critical review of the importance of the CSR
The CSR is an important factor that must be adhered buy the organizations in order to
ensure that the organizations make their progress in the market structure. Moreover, the growing
needs of the conservation of the resources available in the environment is another important
factor that justifies the reason as to the why the companies are required to be sustainable in
nature. According to Flammer (2013) the CSR determines the sustainable approach of a
company, and not only so, but also it helps in determining the position of the organization in the
market. The most important factor that is being undertaken by the organization is based on the
eco-friendly practices that are being adhered by the organizations during their functioning. On
the other hand, Jiraporn et al. (2014) stated that the most common factor that is being
undertaken by the organizations are based on the profitability of the steps that are being
undertaken by the organizations. CSR is not only important as it focuses on the sustainability of
the environment through the steps undertaken by the organization, but also it focuses on the
relations that are being undertaken by the organizations with its chief stakeholders. The
maintenance of a good relation with the company’s stakeholders helps the organization in
undertaking the quick progression in the market. It has helped the organization in making the
most of the resources and thereby excel in the market. According to Hilson (2012) the most
important function that is being taken by the organizations is based on the sound relation with its
chief stakeholders. It helps the organization in gaining over the confidence and thereby make a
quick progression in the market.

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The most important changes that the organization must take is based on the sustenance of
the organization and the relative growth and expansion of the organization in the foreign
markets. The growing awareness among the people and the global concern for the depletion of
the environment through the industrial emissions is a proven cause which is being judged by the
people all around the world. Therefore, in order to achieve the sustainable market, the
organizations must take steps in order to bring in the eco-friendly practices. It will help the
organization in making its progress in the markets. Most of the analysts have pointed out that the
resourcefulness of the CSR, undertaken by the organizations has helped them in undertaking
their progress in the markets. It has helped the organizations in establishing a good relation with
the stakeholders, minimized the costs of production and thereby have resulted to the smooth
functioning of the organizations resulting to the growth and expansions in their respective
markets. Moser and Martin (2012) stated that the most important phenomenon in the
management of the organization is based on the determination of the CSR of the organization as
it helps in the understanding of the structure of the organization and its objectives. The most
important steps that ate being undertaken by the organizations is based on the empowerment of
the society in which they undertake their functions. The most important part of the CSR is based
on the organization’s charity that is being undertaken in order to upgrade the standard of living
of the people in the region where the organization is functioning. Organizations with the aim of
earning fair returns on their investments live a short termed existence in the markets. On the
other hand, the others- who are looking for a sustainable and balanced market, undertakes steps
in order to undertake the norms and the considerations of the CSR in order to bring in
improvements in the organizational structure and the market of the organizations. Therefore,
from the above discussion it can be stated that the organizations must undertake the process of

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the CSR in order to bring in changes in the market of the organization and also to maintain a
sustainable approach. On the other hand, the organization’s undertaking of the CSR will
facilitate the sustainability of the environment and the people at large.
CSR reports of two UK companies
The CSR reports that are being enumerated of the two UK based companies are being
discussed in this section of the analysis. It will help in the understanding of the undertakings of
the organizations and the responsibility that the organizations hold respectively towards the
environment and the people at large.
Case 1: Thornton’s
Thornton’s is a premium chocolate company based on the UK. The product offering s of
the organizations is based on the dairy products as it manufactures the dark and the milk
chocolates to be distributed within the borders of the nation. The company has undertaken steps
in order to review their CSR as a basis of their motto which is to bring in smiles in the faces of
their consumers (Casey and Grenier 2014). It is a sustainable approach of the organization which
has helped the organization in surviving the market competition that the company and its
products faced in the market. On the other hand, the sustainable nature of the organizations can
be understood from their adherence to the CSR techniques. It has helped in the undertaking of
the eco-friendly techniques of manufacturing the products and the charity that is being
undertaken by the organization towards its society.
The company undertakes charitable functions, which is being funded by the staff
members of the organizations. It undertakes steps in order to empower the community through
their charitable attempts (Tang, Hull and Rothenberg 2012). Moreover, the company also

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donates money for the well being of the needed people in the community. It is therefore a social
function that the organization undertakes. It helps in determining the sustenance of the society in
which the concerned organization functions. The fund raising pursuits have helped in bringing in
the improvements in the community. It is due to the actions of the organizations that the
community has started developing and through the developments of the communities, the
company progressed and developed.
On the other hand, the environment policy that is being undertaken by the organization
has helped in the maintenance of the environment. The eco-friendly measures that are being
undertaken by the organization have helped in the conservation of the natural resources during
the production process (Brammer, Jackson and Matten 2012). Moreover, the harmful emissions
are also being controlled by technologies that are being applied by the organization in the
production process. The company also undertakes the recycling of the waste materials before
dumping them in the open environments or the landfills. It has helped in the growth of a healthy
environment for the communities.
The company aims at saving the energy while conducting their production processes in
order to make sure that the organization is conserving the energy for the future usage. The target
that is being set by the Food and Drink Federation is being undertaken by the organizations as it
has decreased the consumption of energy by 10% in a year’s time (Cheng, Ioannou and Serafeim
2014). Therefore, it shows the progress made by the organization in order to save the energy in
the production and the distribution of the goods that are being produced by the organization. On
the other hand, the company has also undertakes steps in order to regulate the usage of the water
in their production process. It has helped the organization in making significant changes in order
to make a sustainable market for them. The company has signed the Commitment of the

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Federation House 2011, which stated that the company will reduce the usage of water during the
production process by 20%. It will help the organization in the proper undertaking of the CSR
functions.
Case 2: Greggs UK
It is one of the largest bakeries in the nation. The products that the company specializes
on are based on the requirements of the consumers. It is the sweet baked goods and the cakes that
the bakery produces which is facing a high demand in the UK market. The company has
expanded kin the later years of its inception. Recently it holds some 1600 retail stores around the
markets of its operations. The CSR that is being adhered by the organization is the point of
discussion of this section of the report.
The company has raised funds through the employees and the staff members in order to
set up the Gregg’s foundation which contributes to the breakfast clubs of the schools in the UK.
Therefore, it is into its charitable consent where the company cares for the local communities and
donates the sum of money in order to bring ion changes in their lives. On the other hand, they
have contributed large sums of money for the North of England Children’s Cancer Research
Fund and the BBC’s Children in Need appeal (Low and Ang 2012).
Moreover, the company takes steps in order to employ the offenders in the prison house
in order to deliver a good life. On the other hand it has taken partnership with the Job Centre Plus
in order to provide vacancies for the young people who are desiring to work (Dhaliwal et

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al.2012). Therefore, it helps in the creation of the employment and thereby raises the standard of
living of the people living in the community.
The company also undertakes steps in order to manage the wastes efficiently so as not to
affect the wellbeing of the environment and the people living in the same. The steps that are
being taken by the organization helps in reducing the wastes from the environments. Therefore,
the steps taken by the company helps in rendering a healthy life to the communities. On the other
hand, the proper usage of the Photovoltaic rooftops has helped the organization ink conserving
the power. It helps in the reduction of the carbon. It is estimated that some 1.3m kWh of
electricity will be generated for the usage in the bakeries which will help the organization in
saving almost around six hundred tons of carbon (Crane, Matten and Spence 2013). The
sustainable approach of the organization has helped in its considerable growth in the UK markets
and thereby the usage of the CSR has helped the organization in balancing their business
environment with the life of the communities.

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References
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Bondy, K., Moon, J. and Matten, D., 2012. An institution of corporate social responsibility
(CSR) in multi-national corporations (MNCs): Form and implications. Journal of Business
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Tai, F.M. and Chuang, S.H., 2014. Corporate social responsibility. Ibusiness, 6(03), p.117.
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Theory, 34(1), pp.97-130.
Cheng, B., Ioannou, I. and Serafeim, G., 2014. Corporate social responsibility and access to
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